Keep Your Ego Out Of The Picture

I tend to over-analyse EVERYTHING and sometimes even doubt my talents (ya, I know, shocker!).  In the earlier days of taking pictures as a hobby, this was not a problem.  I just took pictures in the garden because I liked the flowers and the scenery, and photos just seemed to take themselves. 

Familiar Faces Of Spring

A Mother's Day Surprise

I have recently returned to creating greeting cards for Greeting Card Universe.  I've been busy with a website and other artistic projects , so it was difficult to find the time to create cards.  However, I had quite a large collection of flower pictures taken over the last two years, so I got busy narrowing down a few good picks for cards. 

Within a week of creating and posting Mother's Day greeting cards, I sold one.  I was so delighted, I had to share the news with everyone.  I've had a few blank cards posted for almost a year, and they have not moved this quickly.  That's why I was so excited to have these last submissions approved so quickly by the reviewers. The purple coneflower macro photo was taken on a very sunny day at the end of Summer last year. The garden was winding down, and a few of the blooms were still a vibrant pink.

This particular coneflower plant has been the focus of several beautiful images that are featured on my galleries of prints and on greeting cards. I find the echinacea flower to be one of the most beautiful and is one of my favourites. Even at the end of Summer when the petals are rusty and wilting, the stocks remain sentinel for months with large seedheads that the goldfinches love to feed on.

It's a small accomplishment like selling a greeting card that keeps me motivated and inspired to continue creating art and doing photography. I am truly blessed to be doing what I love, and I'm ecstatic when others appreciate my work. That is the most gratifying part of my artful life.

Itching For Photography

I haven't had a chance to take photos in about a week.  I have several projects on the go right now, many of which are related to photography, but I'm starting to feel the urge to get out there.  There's so much going on, just beyond the back door.  The buds are starting to unfold and reveal tiny, wrinkled leaves.  Robins, juncos, sparrows are converging under the pine, lunging, dodging, twittering.  The opportunities for great macro photos are making my mouth water...

Photography is one of my favourite pastimes, so naturally, I crave it if I go without it too long.  So I think I'll set aside a few writing assignments I originally planned for the next few days, and dust off the tripod instead.   The landscape is changing so quickly, it would be a shame to miss out on some of the most visible transformations of Spring.

I can't wait to see what this stroll reveals... 

Today, I Begin A New Life...

Today...

I begin a new life.
I will greet this day with love in my heart.
I will persist until I succeed.
I am nature's greatest miracle.
I will live this day as if it is my last.
I will be master of my emotions.
I will laugh at the world.
I will multiply my value a hundredfold.
I will act NOW.
I will pray for guidance.

(From The Greatest Salesman In The World by Og Mandino)



My journey through the lens is taking me within and with each new discovery, I see the world with new eyes.  

This photo was taken last Fall on a leisurely stroll with my kids, but became the focus of my week on a deeper level.  I am embarking on a new direction in my life, and during quiet contemplation about this, I felt an instant connection to the photo.  

At that same moment, my eyes were drawn to the bulletin board above my desk and came to rest on a small piece of paper.  On it were scribbled the ten scrolls from Og Mandino's The Greatest Salesman In the World.   

New beginnings can be frightening without faith, hope and courage.  The scrolls are guideposts to live by, through good and bad.  I just wanted to share them with you.
 

Dreams of Summer

With a long winter behind us and Spring cleaning in full swing, the back yard is starting to show signs of being a spectacular show stopper for another season.

This morning, I took a stroll and saw that last night's rain has done a world of good.  The grass is greener and the spring bulbs seem to have sprouted an extra few inches overnight!  I even compared the photos I took on Sunday of the lilac bushes with those I took this morning, and was amazed at the difference.  I guess the seasons are as eager to be seen as we are of enjoying them.

My hubby has already completed a Spring garden project (there's nothing like an extra long-weekend to knock off a few things on a to-do list!).  Some of the flower beds needed to be widened, so he dug out the lawn a few feet out and brought the garden edging out a bit.  Our composters continued to produce great soil all winter, so we were able to fill in the extra space this created.

It wasn't all work and no play.  We played football with our youngest daughter, and took a hike up and around the local waterfalls.

I'm really excited to begin a new season, as many of us are.  Winter can be a beautiful, serene season with many photo opportunities as long as you know where to look.  But Spring and Summer, they're easy.  Everywhere you look, there is something spectacular to behold.  So with camera and tripod in had, I'm off to the back to capture the ever-changing scenery and take in the sounds of the returning birds; I hope to catch a glimpse of the crows nesting in our pine tree, if they're so gracious as to grant me a peek.